White Collar: A Primer

In just a few minutes, I’m going to be watching the White Collar season two premiere for the third or fourth time, and I’m sitting here really looking forward to it.  And following the show on the social networks—the writers, creator, and some of the cast take time to tweet or post on facebook—keeps me anxiously looking forward to the new episode each week.  I know I’ve said a time or two that you’ll probably be hearing a lot about the show here, so it occurred to me I should take a moment for a proper introduction for those of you who might not have had the pleasure just yet.  So, sit back for a minute or two, and I’ll tell you all about the object of my obsession.

First, the basics.  White Collar stars Matt Bomer as Neal Caffrey (partially reformed con artist extraordinaire), and Tim DeKay as Peter Burke (FBI agent extraordinaire).  When we first meet them, Caffrey is escaping from a maximum security prison (but don’t get me started on why a white collar criminal would be in such a place to begin with), and Burke is soon brought in to catch him.  We quickly learn that Burke’s services were requested because he’s the guy who put Neal in the slammer to begin with.  We also learn that Neal skipped out on the slammer in search of the love of his life after she dumped him through the visitor's glass.

Once Burke catches up with Caffrey for the second time, Neal offers a deal in exchange for getting out of prison:  he’ll help the feds catch the folks still engaging in the sort of crimes he used to pull off so effortlessly.  Burke is hesitant at first, but ultimately agrees, taking on Neal as his partner/consultant.  Caffrey’s cooperation is ensured with an ankle tracker that limits his movement to a two mile radius, as well as his ongoing quest to find the girl who got away, which he fully recognizes can’t be done from inside a cell.

So begins the unlikely partnership that is just so much fun to watch.  Peter and Neal are your typical odd couple—polar opposites on the surface, but who really share some fundamental values underneath, even if they do accomplish things in different ways.  Watching them bicker and banter their way from wary cooperation to true friendship is like watching a master craftsman creating a work of art:  it starts off a little messy but the final product is amazing to behold.

Of course, Peter and Neal don’t exist in a vacuum.  There’s a nice ensemble of support around our main characters, including a trusted confidante for each of them.  Peter has his wife of ten years, Elizabeth, brought to beautiful life by Tiffani Thiessen.  She’s both an understanding cop’s wife and a successful professional in her own right, and she’s the perfect sounding board when Peter is confused by his new partner.

For Neal, the sounding board comes in the form of the man known only as Mozzie, played by the wonderfully funny Willie Garson.  Mozzie and Neal seem to go way back, bonded together by shared cons, close calls, and who knows what all, though they are seemingly even more different than Neal and Peter.  While Neal is the suave and charming one, at ease in any situation, Moz is nervous and paranoid and looks like he does actually live in the storage container we hear mentioned but never see. 

Some of the best scenes to date in the series come when these two groups of people cross paths:  Peter and Mozzie, Neal and Elizabeth, Elizabeth and Moz.  It’s never boring.

And, really, that’s the truth about the show in general:  it’s never boring, always fun.  It’s part of the USA Network lineup, and fits perfectly in their “characters welcome” and “blue skies” motif.  White Collar deftly combines drama, comedy, and action together in the beautiful setting of upscale New York City, and lets us watch some unique people go about finding the bad guys, finding lost loves, and maybe finding themselves somewhere along the way. 

If you haven’t yet made this delightfully breezy show part of your Tuesday night viewing, do yourself a favor and give it a try.  I think you’ll be glad you did.

White Collar 2.01: Withdrawal

As I’ve probably already mentioned, White Collar is a current passion.  The way a typical police procedural is wrapped up in a lighter package—laughter, love, growing friendship—it’s a real winning combination.  Consequently, July 13th has been marked on my calendar for a long time now, anticipating both the season two premiere and the DVD release of season one. (Quite the day for the Collars.)  Sadly, big day or no, I still had to work Tuesday night, so it was about 2:30am before I got to watch the premiere, and now I’ve just finished watching it for the second time.

After a successful debut season, there’s always the fear that it will be difficult to keep a show going—a moment or twenty of wondering if part of what made it so good was simply the newness.  What if it isn’t as much fun when we get used to it? (That’s what I feel as a viewer; imagine the folks actually creating the thing!)  But, after watching “Withdrawal”, I’m pleased to report that White Collar seems to be in no jeopardy of giving in to a sophomore slump.  Peter, Neal and the gang are in fine form, and it’s great to see them in action again.

We pick up almost immediately after the big bang finale of season one, but we don’t dwell there long.  Cue the set up to reinstate the partnership and then fast-forward two months.  There’s some logic there; nobody really wants to watch hour after hour of Neal broken and sobbing, though after spending the first season relentlessly pursuing the love of his life, you could expect the guy to be grieving after seeing her blown to bits.  So, it’s a smart move to leave some of that to the imagination.  On the other hand, I think we might’ve been short-changed just a little bit.  Kate has always been a mystery to us; for the most part, we know her only by the impact she has on Neal.  So while seeing the plane explode last year was surprising, it’s not much more than that to us.  It’s hard for the viewer to grieve, or even be glad she’s gone, because we never really knew her.  We need to have Neal’s reaction in order for that chapter to be fully closed for us.  (Of course, there is always rampant speculation that Kate is not really dead, and I will admit that I am almost fully in the camp that believes we’ll see her again.  So maybe we’re not supposed to have a lot of closure.)

But, while a lot of the grief is glossed over, concern for Neal’s well being does give us a lovely little subplot, with Peter and Mozzie conspiring to keep him on track.  Those scenes in the park are worth the price of admission. (Remember that in about a year, when you’re trying to decide if you should shell out the cost for S2 DVDs.)  Moz is in full paranoia mode about being seen with a suit, and Peter goes along with most of it in good humor, all for the greater good of helping their mutual friend. 

Anyway, as I said, we don’t dwell long in the immediate aftermath of the trauma, but are soon back to some amusing banter and busting bad guys.  This week’s bad guy is a bank robber known as The Architect, and Tim Matheson does an excellent job of turning him in to a real arrogant bastard, to quote our favorite con man.  He pulled off a clever enough heist, too, but truthfully, Neal’s was better.  But, of course, this is New York, so you know they have to catch the guy, no matter how slippery he’d been until then.  The feds probably ought to think about checking on the security managers in Dallas, Chicago, and Boston. 

Most of the familiar faces are back in season two, including Marsha Thomason as Diana.  She showed up in the season one finale, and was a welcome return; I was thrilled with the announcement that she would be returning as a regular this year.  Of course, two lady suits is probably one too many in this little ensemble, so Diana’s return means the departure of Lauren Cruz.  No offense to Natalie Morales, but I consider that a good trade.

So, after that one staffing change, we’re back to where we started, with just a few tweaks:  Peter’s with the Bureau, but on shaky ground after everything with Fowler and Mentor.  But Elizabeth is still his lovely wife and confidante, and he can still count on Neal to have his back when the chips are down.  Neal’s back in FBI custody, with a new and improved anklet, but he’s ever so slightly more at ease with it all.  He’s also got a new quest.  Last year it was Kate and the Man with the Ring, which turned into the music box.  This year, it starts with the music box in order to find who killed Kate. Of course, we’re ahead of Neal on this one, and already know who has the box; now we just need to know why.  Really, it’s a wonderful continuing arc to underlie the weekly capers, and I’m looking forward to watching it unfold. 

So, meet me in the park if you ever want to talk about the continuing exploits of Caffrey and Burke (or is it Burke and Caffrey?).  I’ll be the one with the newspaper; just don’t forget to ask about the mockingbird.

Like Christmas in July

My heart is fluttering, and I’m grinning like a fool.  White Collar Season One DVDs just arrived in the mail!  Never mind that I have to leave for work in a few short minutes, so will have to delay watching the yummy goodness for more than twelve hours; just knowing that they will be waiting for me in the wee hours this morning will keep me in a good mood all shift.

And, for the record, judging by the premiere episode, season two does not look to be a disappointment.  More on that later.

Whoo-hoo!

Sifting Through the Chaff

What makes good TV?  For a blog dedicated to sharing my views on that very topic, you’d think I should have a ready answer to that question.  Unfortunately, the problem is, it’s not as simple as it sounds.  See, good TV—like beauty—is very dependent on the viewer.  Everyone has their preferences, their biases.  For instance, right this minute, I’m watching a marathon of The Greatest American Hero.  It was a reasonably successful show back in the 80s (back when Stephen J. Cannell was a television mogul, rather than a bestselling novelist), and the fact that it  had a twenty hour marathon today makes it seem that a decent amount of folks would consider it “good”, but it’s also a good example of my preferences.  So, if I’m going to be giving out my thoughts on what’s on the tube, it might be fair to start with some of the basics about what I like (and maybe a little bit about what I don't).

First, I’m a sucker for a good old-fashioned buddy show.  GAH is one example, but there are plenty of others.  Sticking with Cannell products, one of my favorites of all time is Hardcastle and McCormick.  Then there’s Starsky and Hutch, Alias Smith and Jones, Wild Wild West, Simon and Simon . . . the list could go on and on.  On a bit of a side-note, it makes me a little sad that this list is made up of old shows; true buddy shows are pretty rare these days.  High on my list of current shows is White Collar, one of the few modern-day buddy shows—and one that will almost certainly show up here regularly.

The next thing that’s always a plus in my book is smart dialogue.  Snappy repartee, impassioned orations, casual literary or historical references—these are the sorts of things that score high with me.

And the last thing that comes to mind tonight (though I don’t intend this list to be all-inclusive) is believability.  Now, this shouldn’t be confused with realism; I’m not expecting—or even wanting—complete veracity in the programs I watch.  But while I’m watching, I do want to believe that the characters believe.  I enjoy any number of programs that start with some pretty unlikely foundations (see some of those buddy shows mentioned earlier), but they are always constructed in such a way that the suspension of disbelief is easy.  That’s a pretty fine balancing act sometimes, and the primary credit is split between the writers and the actors, but every little bit of the production plays a part, as well.  When everything comes together like it should, the viewer is lost in a world that only exists in that 30 or 60 minute block of time.

So, if that’s a brief look at things I’m biased toward, are there things I’m biased against?  Absolutely.  The most obvious would be the opposite sides of the listed virtues.  I don’t like insipid dialogue, or characters that sound stilted, or cliché, or just plain stupid.  I also can’t abide watching any program that continually reminds me that it’s not real.  If a show can’t create that suspension of disbelief—if I’m always aware that it’s just TV—then I don’t want any part of it.

Beyond that, there’s only one really huge deal-breaker for me, and it’s a fairly new invention in the grand scheme of things:  reality television.  Anyone browsing these postings hoping for the latest updates on Big Brother or Survivor has come to the wrong place. American Idol and Dancing with the Stars are likewise not on my viewing list.  Call me old fashioned, but I like my television to be scripted and staged (and admit as much). 

With these basic guidelines in place, though, it then becomes a matter watching a show and simply seeing if it “clicks”.  Sometimes—not often, but sometimes—that click is instant, and I know immediately I’ve found a new favorite (White Collar), but more often, it takes a while for a show to really grow on me.  These days I love to stumble across reruns of old Friends episodes, but I’m not too proud to admit I wasn’t sold from the start.  On the other hand, it also usually takes at least a few episodes before I’ll completely write something off; the programs that completely turn me off with the first viewing are almost as rare as the ones that win me over that quickly.

So, that’s a peek at my criteria for “good TV”.  Your list is probably at least a little bit different, but I still bet we end up in the same place every now and again.

I Was Thinking

If you take family and friends out of the mix, there's not much I enjoy more than watching television. Really, it's everything to me that entertainment should be: engaging, smart, funny, dramatic, thoughtful. . . the list could go on. Of course, that's when it's done right. There's a lot on TV these days that isn't any of these things, but I don't spend a lot of time with those programs. (That's true about TV from days past, too, and, unfortunately, days to come. It's just not possible for it to all be good, and just as impossible for it all to appeal to one person.)

One of the other things I find myself doing from time to time is reading other people's thoughts about television that they've been watching, and that's what actually got me to thinking. Like I said, I like TV. I certainly have thoughts about the stuff I'm watching. And, I like to think I can string words together in a fairly coherent fashion. So, why not jot down some of my own thoughts? The Internet makes it easy to put your ideas down on today's equivalent of paper, and the broadcast industry provides plenty of things to choose from day after day, year after year. Makes perfect sense to me that these things should come together in a blog about television viewing.

So, welcome. I don't intend that my posts serve as an actual review; they may not always be that balanced, or founded in reason. Mostly, they'll be my thoughts on a particular show, episode, maybe performer or writer. Episode recaps will likely be common for any program I'm particularly fond of. Really, it's just going to be about what I like—or maybe don't like—about TV. I'm going to try to have some fun with it, and I hope you will too.